European war 4 leipzig campaign3/11/2023 ![]() Richard Caton Woodville - Charge of Polish uhlans at Leipzig (1912) Campaign of France ( Six Days' Campaign).Bottled in by the French, Melas was obliged the next day to ask for an armistice, which led to the loss of Lombardy to France. The whole French line went over to the offensive, forcing the Austrians back into Alessandria with heavy losses. Although Desaix was killed, sustained French pressure and the chance explosion of an Austrian ammunition wagon provided Kellermann with an opportunity his cuirassiers charged into the Austrian flank, causing confusion that turned into dismay when General Joachim Murat’s light cavalry joined in the attack. Supported by French artillery and the heavy cavalry of General François Kellermann, the French closed in on the Austrians. ![]() Desaix, one of Napoleon’s most trusted lieutenants, spearheaded the counterattack. Unknown to the Austrians, French reinforcements were beginning to arrive on the battlefield and included the formations of Major Generals Louis Desaix and Jean Boudet. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. This was certainly Melas’s impression he retired from the battlefield to have a minor wound dressed, handing over command to his chief of staff, General Anton Zach. French counterattacks were repulsed repeatedly, and it seemed that the Austrians would be victorious. Ultimately, Austrian numerical superiority forced the exhausted French to retreat to a new position at St. Major General Claude Victor’s corps bore the brunt of the Austrian attack, but it fought a determined delaying action. The Austrians advanced in three columns, Melas in the center with Generals Ott and O’Reilly attacking on the flanks. Initially, Napoleon thought the Austrians were conducting a diversionary action, but it soon became clear that this was a full-scale assault urgent dispatches were sent to the now dispersed French divisions to march to Marengo. Thus, when the Austrians decamped from Alessandria and crossed the River Bormida, the French were caught by surprise. Napoleon believed that the Austrians were about to retreat and he detached several formations to prevent them evading his net. As a result, the Austrian commander, General Michael von Melas, withdrew his forces from the Franco-Italian border to give battle to the French near the fortified town of Alessandria. Despite this, Napoleon’s daring move through the Alps had placed his army squarely across the Austrian lines of communication. One of the French aims of the campaign had been to relieve the French garrison besieged by the Austrians in Genoa, but the city fell to the Austrians on 4 June. Bernard Pass, reaching the Po valley on 24 May with 40,000 men but only six guns. Napoleon’s Army of the Reserve secretly crossed the St. Turning his attention to the strategic situation in Europe, he decided to lead an army over the Swiss Alps to attack the Austrians in northern Italy, while French forces under General Jean Victor Moreau marched into southern Germany. SpaceNext50 Britannica presents SpaceNext50, From the race to the Moon to space stewardship, we explore a wide range of subjects that feed our curiosity about space!įollowing his return from Egypt in October 1799, Napoleon exploited the muddled state of French politics and effectively seized power in France, naming himself First Consul in December.Learn about the major environmental problems facing our planet and what can be done about them! Saving Earth Britannica Presents Earth’s To-Do List for the 21st Century.Britannica Beyond We’ve created a new place where questions are at the center of learning. ![]()
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